(©lb  ^outl)  Heafletsf. 


Description  of 

the  New 
Netherlands. 


^a  69. 


By  Adrian  Van  der  Donck. 


A  Description  of  the  New  Netherlands  (as  the  same  are  at  the 
Present  Time)  ;  comprehending  the  Fruitfulness  and  Nat- 
ural Advantages  of  the  Country,  and  the  Desirable  Oppor« 
tunities  which  it  presents,  within  itself,  and  from  abroad, 
FOR  the  Subsistence  of  Man  ;  which  are  not  Surpassed  Else- 
where. 1655. 


This  country  is  situated  in  the  New  American  World,  be» 
ginning  north  of  the  Equinoctial  Line,  38  deg.  and  53  min.,  ex- 
tending north-easterly  along  the  sea-coast  to  the  42 d  deg.,  and 
is  named  New-Netherlands,  by  the  Nether  landers,  for  reasons 
to  be  related  hereafter ;  lying  in  the  latitude  of  Sardinia  and 
Corsica,  in  the  Mediterranean  Sea,  and  of  Spain  and  France 
along  the  Ocean;  the  South  River*  corresponding  exactly  with 
the  Flemish  Islands,  with  the  rivers  of  Lisbon,  with  the  south 
point  of  the  Island  of  Sardinia,  and  of  the  FnnctH?n  Meridionale'\ 
of  the  Orientals,  reckoning  an  easterly  course  from  the  Canary 
Islands  by  west,  upon  the  316th  degree,  or  counting  due  west 
44  degrees  from  the  Punctum  Meridionale,  whereon  we  hold 
the  Canary  Islands,  being  660  miles,  corresponding  with  Cape 
Mesuratta  on  the  Barbary  coast  in  Africa,  in  the  kingdom  of 
Tripoli,  and  with  Cape  Spartivento,  being  the  uttermost  corner 
of  Italy  against  the  Mediterranean  Sea.    New-Netherlands  is 

•The  river  Delaware. 

t  The  Punctum  MeridianaU  of  the  Orientals  is  probably  the  meridian  assumed  by  Ptol- 

S,  which  passed  through  the  farthest  of  the  Canary  Islands.  The  Dutch  geographetS 
mariners  pitched  upon  the  Peak  of  Teneriffe  for  their  meridian. 


Where  New- Netherlands  is  situated. 


2 


a  fine,  acceptable,  healthy,  extensive,  and  agreeable  country, 
wherein  all  people  can  more  easily  gain  a  competent  support 
than  in  the  Netherlands,  or  in  any  other  quarter  of  the  globe 
which  is  known  to  me  or  which  I  have  visited. 

Whe?ij  and  by  ivhom^  Neto-Netherlands  was  first  discovered. 

This  country  was  first  found  and  discovered  in  the  year  of 
our  Lord  1609  ;  when,  at  the  cost  of  the  incorporated  East 
India  Company,  a  ship  named  the  Half-Moon  was  fitted  out  to 
discover  a  westerly  passage  to  the  kingdom  of  China.  This 
ship  was  commanded  by  Hendrick  Hudson,  as  captain  and 
supercargo,  who  was  an  Englishman  by  birth,  and  had  resided 
many  years  in  Holland,  during  which  he  had  been  in  the  em- 
ployment of  the  East  India  Company.  This  ship  sailed  from 
the  Canary  Islands,  steering  a  course  north  by  west ;  and,  after 
sailing  twenty  days  with  good  speed,  land  was  discovered, 
which,  by  their  calculation,  lay  320  degrees  by  west.  On  ap- 
proaching the  land,  and  observing  the  coast  and  shore  conven- 
ient, they  landed,  and  examined  the  country  as  well  as  they 
could  at  the  time,  and  as  opportunity  offered ;  from  which  they 
were  well  satisfied  that  no  Christian  people  had  ever  been 
there  before,  and  that  they  were  the  first  who  by  Providence 
had  been  guided  to  the  discovery  of  the  country. 

Why  this  Coimtry  is  called  New-Netherlands. 

We  have  before  related  that  the  Netherlanders,  in  the  year 
1609,  had  first  discovered  this  country,  of  which  they  took  pos- 
session as  their  own  in  right  of  their  discovery,  and  finding  the 
country  fruitful  and  advantageously  situated,  possessing  good 
and  safe  havens,  rivers,  fisheries,  and  many  other  worthy  ap- 
purtenances corresponding  with  the  Netherlands,  or  in  truth 
excelling  the  same  ;  for  this  good  reason  it  was  named  New- 
Netherlands,  being  as  much  as  to  say,  another  or  a  new-found 
Netherlands.  Still  the  name  depended  most  upon  the  first  dis- 
covery, and  upon  the  corresponding  temperatures  of  the  cli- 
mates of  the  two  countries,  which  to  strangers  is  not  so  observ- 
able. We  notice  also  that  the  French  in  the  same  quarter  of 
the  new  world  have  named  their  territory  Canada  or  Nova 
Francia,  only  because  they  were  the  first  Europeans  who  pos- 
sessed the  lands  in  those  parts,  for  the  temperature  of  the  cli- 


3 


mate  is  so  cold  and  wintry  that  the  snow  commonly  lies  on  the 
earth  four  or  five  m.onths  in  succession  and  from  four  to  five 
feet  deep,  which  renders  it  costly  to  keep  domestic  animals 
there ;  and,  although  this  country  lies  no  farther  than  fifty  de- 
grees north,  still  the  air  in  winter  is  so  fine,  clear,  and  sharp 
there  that  when  the  snow  once  falls,  which  it  commonly  does 
about  the  first  of  December,  it  does  not  thaw  away  except  by 
the  power  of  the  sun  in  April.  If  a  shower  of  rain  happens  to 
fall  in  winter  (which  is  seldom),  then  it  forms  a  hard  crust  on 
the  surface  of  the  snow,  that  renders  the  traveUing  difficult  for 
man  and  beast.  The  air  there  is  clear  and  dry,  and  the  snow 
seldom  melts  or  thaws  away  suddenly. 

The  Swedes  also  have  a  possession  on  the  south  (Delaware) 
river,  which  they  name  New- Sweden.  The  climate  of  this 
place  by  no  means  corresponds  with  that  of  Sweden,  as  it  lies 
in  latitude  39  degrees  north.  But,  although  they  have  formed 
a  settlement  there,  still  their  title  is  disputed,  for  they  can 
show  no  legal  right  or  claim  to  their  possessions. 

The  country  having  been  first  found  or  discovered  by  the 
Netherlanders,  and  keeping  in  view  the  discovery  of  the  same, 
it  is  named  the  New-Nerherlands.  That  this  country  was  first 
found  or  discovered  by  the  Netherlanders  is  evident  and  clear 
from  the  fact  that  the  Indians  or  natives  of  the  land,  many  of 
whom  are  still  living,  and  with  whom  I  have  conversed,  declare 
freely  that  before  the  arrival  of  the  Lowland  ship,  the  Half- 
Moon,  in  the  year  1609,  they  (the  natives)  did  not  know  that 
there  were  any  other  people  in  the  world  than  those  who  were 
like  themselves,  much  less  any  people  who  dift'ered  so  much  in 
appearance  from  them  as  we  did.  Their  men  on  the  breasts 
and  about  the  mouth  were  bare,  and  their  women,  like  ours, 
hairy ;  going  unclad  and  almost  naked,  particularly  in  summer, 
while  we  are  always  clothed  and  covered.  When  some  of  them 
first  saw  our  ship  approaching  at  a  distance,  they  did  not  know 
what  to  think  about  her,  but  stood  in  deep  and  solemn  amaze- 
ment, wondering  whether  it  were  a  ghost  or  apparition,  coming 
down  from  heaven,  or  from  hell.  Others  of  them  supposed  her 
to  be  a  strange  fish  or  sea  monster.  When  they  discovered 
men  on  board,  they  supposed  them  to  be  more  like  devils  than 
human  beings.  Thus  they  differed  about  the  ship  and  men. 
A  strange  report  was  also  spread  about  the  country  concerning 
our  ship  and  visit,  which  created  great  astonishment  and  sur- 
prise amongst  the  Indians.    These  things  we  have  frequently 


4 


heard  them  declare,  which  we  hold  as  certain  proof  that  the 
Netherlanders  were  the  first  finders  or  discoverers  and  pos- 
sessors of  the  New-Netherlands.  There  are  Indians  in  the 
country,  who  remember  a  hundred  years,  and,  if  there  had  been 
any  other  people  here  before  us,  they  would  have  known  some- 
thing of  them,  and,  if  they  had  not  seen  them  themselves,  they 
would  have  heard  an  account  of  them  from  others.  There  are 
persons  who  believe  that  the  Spaniards  have  been  here  many 
years  ago,  when  they  found  the  climate  too  cold  to  their  liking, 
and  again  left  the  country ;  and  that  the  maize  or  Turkish 
corn  and  beans  found  among  the  Indians  were  left  with  them 
by  the  Spaniards.  This  opinion  or  belief  is  improbable,  as  we 
can  discover  nothing  of  the  kind  from  the  Indians.  They  say 
that  their  corn  and  beans  were  received  from  the  southern  Ind- 
ians, who  received  their  seed  from  a  people  who  resided  still 
farther  south,  which  may  well  be  true,  as  the  Castilians  have 
long  since  resided  in  Florida.  The  maize  may  have  been 
among  the  Indians  in  the  warm  climate  long  ago.  However, 
our  Indians  say  that  they  did  eat  roots  and  the  bark  of  trees 
instead  of  bread,  before  the  introduction  of  Indian  corn  or 
maize. 

The  Netherlanders  the  First  Possessors  of  New- 
Netherland. 

Although  the  possession  and  title  which  the  Netherlanders 
have  to  New-Netherlands  are  amply  treated  of  in  their  length 
and  breadth,  in  the  Representation  of  the  Commofialty^  and  little 
more  can  be  said  in  relation  to  them  unless  access  be  had  to 
the  Registers  of  the  Honorable  West  India  Company,  we  will 
nevertheless,  touch  upon  them  briefly,  en  passant.  When  this 
country  was  first  discovered  by  the  Netherlanders  in  the  year 
1609,  and  it  was  told  them  by  the  natives  that  they  were  the 
first  Christian  explorers  in  that  region,  they  took  possession  of 
it  in  the  name  and  on  behalf  of  their  High  Mightinesses,  the 
Lords  of  the  States-General  of  the  United  Netherlands,  first  in 
the  South  Bay  at  Cape  Hinloopen,  which  they  so  called  at  that 
time,  and  which  still  retains  that  name ;  and  so  all  along  the 
coast  and  up  the  rivers,  giving  names  to  the  different  places  as 
far  as  the  great  North  River,  a  great  distance  up  which  they 
sailed,  and  which  some  of  the  English  will  still  call  Hudson's 
River,  but  which  was  then  named  Mauritius  River  after  Prince 


5 


Maurice,  who  at  that  time  was  governor  in  Netherland ;  from 
whence  they  sailed  further  along  till  they  went  beyond  Cape 
Cod,  of  which  they  also  took  possession,  and  which  they 
named  New  Holland.  And  our  Netherlanders  have  sailed 
there  and  traded  at  the  same  places  thus  taken  into  possession 
from  time  to  time  since  then,  until  the  charter  was  granted  to 
the  West  Indian  Company,  when  they  passed  under  its  juris- 
diction. And  although  before  we  had  there  in  our  favor  the 
circumstances  of  fifty  families  and  cattle,  yet  since  the  year 
1622  several  forts  have  been  built,  farms  and  plantations 
taken  up,  much  of  the  land  bought  of  the  natives,  and  then 
tokens  of  possession  shown  as  is  to  be  seen  at  length  in  the 
Represejitation  of  the  Commonalty  of  New-Netherland^  to  which 
we  refer  the  curious  reader.  It  is  therefore  unusual,  unhand- 
some, and  unreasonable  for  any  other  nation  to  assert  title  or 
jurisdiction  over  these  places  or  over  those  situated  between 
such  as  were  first  discovered  by  the  Netherlanders. 

Of  the  Limits  of  the  New-Netherlands^  afid  how  far  the 
Sa?ne  extefid. 

New-Netherlands  is  bounded  by  the  ocean  or  great  sea, 
which  separates  Europe  from  America,  by  New-England  and 
the  Fresh  (Connecticut)  river,  in  part  by  the  river  of  Canada, 
(the  St.  Lawrence),  and  by  Virginia.  Some  persons  who  are 
not  well  informed  name  all  North-America  Virgi?iia^  because 
Virginia  from  her  tobacco  trade  is  well  known.  These  circum- 
stances, therefore,  will  be  observed  as  we  progress,  as  admoni- 
tions to  the  readers.  The  coast  of  New-Netherlands  extends 
and  stretches  mostly  north-east  and  south-west.  The  sea-shore 
is  mostly  formed  of  pure  sand,  having  a  dry  beach.  On  the 
south  side,  the  country  is  bounded  by  Virginia.  Those  boun- 
daries are  not  yet  well  defined,  but  in  the  progress  of  the  set- 
tlement of  the  country  the  same  will  be  determined  without 
difficulty.  On  the  north-east  the  New-Netherlands  abut  upon 
New- England,  where  there  are  differences  on  the  subject  of 
boundaries  which  we  wish  were  well  settled.  On  the  north, 
the  river  of  Canada  stretches  a  considerable  distance,  but  to 
the  north-west  it  is  still  undefined  and  unknown.  Many  of  our 
Netherlanders  have  been  far  into  the  country,  more  than 
seventy  or  eighty  miles  from  the  river  and  sea-shore.  We  also 
frequently  trade  with  the  Indians,  who  come  more  than  ten 


6 


and  twenty  days'  journey  from  the  interior,  and  who  have  been 
farther  off  to  catch  beavers,  and  they  know  of  no  Hmits  to  the 
country,  and,  when  spoken  to  on  the  subject,  they  deem  such 
enquiries  to  be  strange  and  singular.  Therefore  we  may 
safely  say  that  we  know  not  how  deep  or  how  far  we  extend 
inland.  There  are,  however,  many  signs,  which  indicate  a  great 
extent  of  country,  such  as  the  land  winds,  which  domineer 
much,  with  severe  cold,  the  multitudes  of  beavers  and  land 
animals  which  are  taken,  and  the  great  numbers  of  water-fowl, 
Avhich  fly  to  and  fro  across  the  country  in  the  spring  and  fall 
seasons.  From  these  circumstances  we  judge  that  the  land  ex- 
tends several  hundred  miles  into  the  interior.  Therefore,  the 
extent  and  greatness  of  this  province  are  still  unknown. 

Of  the  Forelands  and  Sea-havens. 

The  coast  of  New-Netherlands  extends  south-west  and  north- 
east, as  before  mentioned,  and  is  mostly  clean  and  sandy,  dry- 
ing naturally;  and,  although  the  bare,  bleak,  and  open  sea 
breaks  on  the  beach,  still  there  is  good  anchorage  in  almost 
every  place,  because  of  the  clean,  sandy  bottom.  There  sel- 
dom are  severe  gales  from  the  sea,  except  from  the  south-east, 
with  the  spring  tides.  When  the  winds  blow  from  the  north- 
west, which  domineer  the  strongest,  then  there  is  an  upper  or 
windward  shore,  with  smooth  water  and  little  danger.  For 
those  reasons,  the  coast  is  as  convenient  to  approach  at  all 
seasons  as  could  be  desired.  The  highlands,  which  are  natu- 
rally dry,  may  be  seen  far  at  sea,  and  give  timely  warning. 

The  forelands  are  generally  double,  and  in  some  places 
broken  into  islands  (affording  convenient  situations  for  the 
keeping  of  stock),  which  would  lead  seamen  to  suppose,  on 
approaching  the  shore,  that  the  same  were  the  main  land, 
when  the  same  are  islands  and  forelands,  within  which  lie 
large  meadows,  bays,  and  creeks,  affording  convenient  navi- 
gable passages,  and  communications  between  places. 

It  has  pleased  God  to  protect  against  the  raging  sea  those 
parts  of  the  coast  which  have  no  double  foreland,  with  natural 
barriers  of  firm,  strong,  and  secure  stone  foundations,  that 
preserve  the  coast  from  the  inundations  of  the  mighty  ocean 
(which  are  ever  to  be  feared),  where  the  coast,  if  not  thus  pro- 
tected, might  be  lessened  and  destroyed  ;  particularly  the  near- 
est sea  lands,  against  which  the  sea  acts  with  most  violence. 


/ 


7 

Nature  has  secured  those  positions  with  firm,  high,  and  accom- 
modated rocky  heads  and  cliffs,  which  are  as  perfect  forma- 
tions as  the  arts  and  hands  of  man,  with  great  expense,  could 
make  the  same. 

There  are  many  and  different  sea-havens  in  the  New-Nether- 
lands, a  particular  description  of  which  would  form  a  work 
larger  than  we  design  this  to  be.  We  will  therefore  briefly 
notice  this  subject,  and  leave  the  same  for  the  consideration  of 
mariners  and  seamen.  Beginning  at  the  south  and  terminating 
at  Long  Island,  first  comes  Godyn's  bay,  or  the  South  (Dela- 
ware) bay,  which  was  the  first  discovered.  This  bay  lies  in 
39  degrees  north  latitude,  being  six  (Dutch)  miles  wide  and 
nine  miles  long,  and  having  several  banks  or  shoals,  but  still 
possessing  many  advantages  ;  convenient  and  safe  anchorages 
for  ships,  with  roomy  and  safe  harbours.  Here  also  is  a  good 
whale  fishery.  Whales  are  numerous  in  the  winter  on  the 
coast  and  in  the  bay,  where  they  frequently  ground  on  the 
shoals  and  bars ;  but  they  are  not  as  fat  as  the  Greenland 
whales.  If,  however,  the  fishery  was  well  managed,  it  would 
be  profitable.  After  ascending  the  bay  nine  miles,  it  is  termi 
nated  in  a  river,  which  we  name  the  South  river,  to  which  we 
will  again  refer  hereafter,  and  pass  on  to  the  bay,  wherein  the 
East  and  North  rivers  terminate,  and  wherein  Staten  Island 
lies ;  because  the  same  is  most  frequented,  and  the  country  is 
most  populous,  and  because  the  greatest  negotiations  in  trade 
are  carried  on  ..there;  and  also  because  it  is  situated  in  the 
centre  of  the  New-Netherlands.  Hence  it  is  named,  quasi  per 
excellentiarn^  ''The  Bay."  But  before  we  speak  more  at  large 
of  this  place,  we  will  attend  to  the  places,  and  their  advantages, 
which  lie  between  this  bay  and  the  South  bay. 

Between  those  two  bays,  the  coast,  almost  the  whole  dis- 
tance, has  double  forelands,  with  many  islands,  which  in  some 
places  He  two  or  three  deep.  Those  forelands  as  well  as  the 
islands  are  well  situated  for  seaboard  towns,  and  all  kind  of 
fisheries,  and  also  for  the  cultivation  of  grain,  vineyards,  and 
gardening,  and  the  keeping  of  stock,  for  which  purposes  the 
land  is  tolerably  good.  Those  lands  are  now  mostly  over- 
grown with  different  kinds  of  trees  and  grape-vines ;  having 
many  plums,  hazel-nuts  and  strawberries,  and  much  grass. 
The  waters  abound  with  oysters,  having  many  convenient 
banks  and  beds  where  they  may  be  taken. 

Besides  the  many  islands  which  lie  between  the  aforesaid 


8 


bays,  many  of  which  are  highland,  there  are  also  several  fine 
bays  and  inland  waters,  which  form  good  sea  harbours  for 
those  who  are  acquainted  with  the  inlets  and  entrances  to  the 
same,  which  at  present  are  not  much  used ;  particularly  the 
Bear-gat,  Great  and  Little  Egg  Harbours,  Barnegat,  &c., 
wherein  the  anchorages  are  safe  and  secure.  But  as  New- 
Netherlands  is  not  yet  well  peopled,  and  as  there  are  but  few 
Christians  settled  at  those  places,  these  harbours  are  seldom 
used,  unless  the  winds  and  weather  render  it  necessary  for 
safety. 

The  before-mentioned  bay,  wherein  Staten  Island  lies,  is  the 
most  famous,  because  the  East  and  North  rivers  empty  therein, 
which  are  two  fine  rivers,  and  will  be  further  noticed  hereafter. 
Besides  those,  there  are  several  kills,  inlets,  and  creeks,  some 
of  which  resemble  small  rivers,  as  the  Raritan,  Kill  van  Col, 
Neuversinck,  &c.  Moreover,  the  said  bay  affords  a  safe  and 
convenient  haven  from  all  winds,  wherein  a  thousand  ships 
may  ride  in  safety  inland.  The  entrance  into  the  bay  is  rea- 
sonably wide  or  roomy,  without  much  danger,  and  easily  found 
by  those  who  have  entered  the  same,  or  are  well  instructed. 
We  can  also  easily,  if  the  wind  and  tide  suit,  in  one  tide  sail 
and  proceed  from  the  sea  to  New-Amsterdam  (which  lies  five 
miles  from  the  open  sea),  with  the  largest  ships  fully  iaden  ; 
and  in  like  manner  proceed  from  New- Amsterdam  to  sea.  But 
the  outward  bound  vessels  usually  stop  at  the  watering-place 
under  Staten  Island,  to  lay  in  a  sufficient  supply  of  wood  and 
water,  which  are  easily  obtained  at  that  place.  We  also  fre- 
quently stop  far  in  the  bay  behind  Sand  Point  (Sandy  Hook) 
in  waiting  for  the  last  passengers  and  letters,  and  to  avail  our- 
selves of  the  wind  and  tide. 

Along  the  sea-coast  of  Long  Island  there  are  also  several 
safe,  commodious  inlets  for  small  vessels,  which  are  not  much 
frequented  by  us.  There  also  are  many  spacious  inland  bays, 
from  which,  by  the  inlets  (at  full  tide),  the  sea  is  easy  of  ac- 
cess ;  otherwise  those  are  too  shallow.  The  same  also  are  not 
much  frequented  by  us.  With  population  several  of  the  places 
would  become  important,  which  now,  for  brevity's  sake,  we 
pass  over. 

Between  Long  Island  and  the  main  land  there  are  through- 
out many  safe  and  convenient  places  for  large  and  small  ves- 
sels, which  may  be  occupied,  if  necessary.  For  in  connection 
with  the  whole  river  which  is  held  by  many  to  be  a  bay,  there 


9 


are  in  the  main  land  and  in  the  island  opposite  to  the  same 
many  safe  bays,  harbours,  and  creeks,  which  are  but  little 
known  to  us,  and  which  the  English,  by  their  deWces,  have  ap- 
propriated.  Although  this  subject  is  spoken  of  in  the  remon- 
strances of  the  New-Netherlands,  we  will  pass  over  it  without 
waking  the  sleepers^  and  attend  briefly  to  the  most  important 
rivers,  waters,  and  creeks. 

Of  the  North  River. 

We  have  before  noticed  the  name  of  this  river,  with  the 
population  and  advantages  of  the  country ;  and,  inasmuch  as  a 
particular  and  ample  account  of  the  same  is  preparing  for  pub- 
lication, we  will  at  once  say  that  this  river  is  the  most  famous, 
and  the  country  the  most  populous  of  any  in  the  New-Nether- 
lands. There  are  also  several  colonies  settled,  besides  the  city 
of  New- Amsterdam,  on  the  island  of  Manhattan,  where  the 
most  of  the  trade  of  this  river  centres.  The  river  carries  flood 
tides  forty  miles  up  the  same.*  Several  fine  creeks  empty 
into  this  river,  such  as  the  Great  and  Small  Esopus  kills,  Kats 
kill,  Sleepy  Haven  kill,  Colondonck's  kill  or  Saw  kill,  Wap- 
pincke's  kill,  &c.  We  can  also  pass  from  the  North  river  be- 
hind Manhattan  island  by  the  East  river,  without  approaching 
New- Amsterdam.  This  river  still  remains  altogether  in  the 
possession  and  jurisdiction  of  the  Netherlanders,  without  being 
invaded ;  but,  if  the  population  did  not  increase  and  advance, 
there  would  Oe  great  danger  of  its  long  continuation.  This 
river  is  rich  in  fishes :  sturgeon,  dunns,  bass,  sheep-heads,  <S:c. 
I  cannot  refrain,  although  somewhat  out  of  place,  to  relate  a 
very  singular  occurrence,  which  happened  in  the  month  of 
March,  1647,  at  the  time  of  a  great  freshet  caused  by  the  fresh 
Avater  flowing  down  from  above,  by  which  the  water  of  the  river 
became  nearly  fresh  to  the  bay,  Avhen  at  ordinary  seasons  the 
salt  water  flows  up  from  twenty  to  twenty-four  miles  from  the 
sea.  At  this  season,  two  whales,  of  common  size,  swam  up 
the  river  fortv  miles,  from  which  place  one  of  them  returned 
and  stranded  about  twelve  miles  from  the  sea,  near  which 
place  four  others  also  stranded  the  same  year.  The  other  run 
farther  up  the  river,  and  grounded  near  the  great  Chahoos  falls, 
about  forty-three  miles  from  the  sea.  This  fish  was  tolerably 
fat,  for  although  the  citizens  of  Rensselaerwyck  broiled  out  a 

•A  Dutch  mile  is  about  three  English  miles. 


10 


great  quantity  of  train  oil,  still  the  whole  river  (the  current 
being  still  rapid)  was  oily  for  three  weeks,  and  covered  with 
grease.  As  the  fish  lay  rotting,  the  air  was  infected  with  its 
stench  to  such  a  degree  that  the  smell  was  offensive  and  per- 
ceptible for  two  miles  to  leeward.  For  what  purpose  those 
whales  ascended  the  river  so  far,  it  being  at  the  time  full  forty 
miles  from  all  salt  or  brackish  water,  it  is  difficult  to  say, 
unless  their  great  desire  for  fish,  which  were  plenty  at  this 
season,  led  them  onward. 

Forty-four  miles  from  the  sea  this  North  river  is  divided. 
One  part  by  four  sprouts  ascends  to  the  great  falls  of  the 
Maquas  kill,  which  is  named  the  Chahoos,  of  which  we  will 
treat  presently.  The  other  part,  which  retains  the  name  of  the 
North  river,  is  navigable  for  boats  several  miles  farther,  and, 
according  to  the  information  of  the  Indians,  rises  in  a  great 
lake,  from  which  the  river  of  Canada  also  proceeds.  This 
should  be  the  lake  of  the  Jracoysen  (lake  Ontario),  which  is  as 
great  as  the  Mediterranean  Sea,  being  about  forty  miles  wide, 
when  in  the  middle  of  the  sea,  no  eye  can  see  land  or  see  over 
it.  The  lake  also  has  extensive  reed  and  brook  lands  of  great 
breadth,  wherein  great  multitudes  of  water-fowl  breed  in  sum- 
mer. When  the  Indians  intend  to  cross  this  lake,  they  know 
certain  islands  which  lie  therein,  and  proceed  from  one  to  an- 
other by  daylight,  to  the  number  of  three  or  four,  without 
which  they  could  not  find  their  way  over  the  same.  This, 
however,  we  relate  on  the  information  of  the  Indians.  They 
also  assert  that  we  can  proceed  in  boats  to  the  river  of  Can- 
ada, which  we  deem,  incredible. 

The  other  arm  of  the  North  river  runs  by  four  sprouts  (as 
we  have  related)  to  the  great  falls  of  the  Maquas  kill  (Mohawk 
river),  which  the  Indians  name  the  Chahoos,  and  our  nation 
the  Great  Falls ;  above  which  the  river  is  again  several  hun- 
dred yards  wide,  and  the  falls  we  estimate  to  be  one  hundred 
and  fifty  or  two  hundred  feet  high.*  The  water  glides  over  the 
tails  as  smooth  as  if  it  ran  over  an  even  wall  and  fell  over  the 
same.  The  precipice  is  formed  of  firm  blue  rock;  near  by  and 
below  the  falls  there  stand  several  rocks,  which  appear  splendid 
in  the  water,  rising  above  it  like  high  turf-heaps,  apparently 
from  eight,  sixteen,  to  thirty  feet  high ;  very  delightful  to  the 
eye.  This  place  is  well  calculated  to  exalt  the  fancy  of  the 
poets.    The  ancient  fabulous  writers  would,  if  they  had  been 

*niis  is  careless  guessing,  tiie  falls  being  seventy  feet  hiu;h. 


II 


here,  have  exalted  those  works  of  nature,  by  the  force  of  imag- 
ination, into  the  most  artful  and  elegant  descriptive  illusions. 
The  waters  descend  rapidly  downwards  from  the  falls,  over  a 
stony  bottom,  skipping,  foaming  and  whirling  boisterously 
about  the  distance  of  a  gunshot  or  more,  when  it  resumes  an 
even  course,  and  flows  downwards.  We  name  this  the  Maquas 
Kill,  but  still  it  is  wider  in  most  places  than  the  Yssell  of  the 
Netherlands.  It,  however,  always  runs  one  way ;  is  navigable 
for  boats,  being  tolerably  deep  and  not  rapid ;  but  it  extends 
above  sixty  miles,  and  runs  through  the  Maquas  and  Senecas 
countries  to  a  lake,  remaining  boatable  all  the  way.  The  river 
passes  through  fine  land,  and  abounds  with  fish.  The  Indians, 
when  they  travel  by  water,  and  come  to  trade,  usually  come  in 
canoes  made  of  the  bark  of  trees,  which  they  know  how  to 
construct.  When  they  come  near  the  falls,  they  land,  and 
carry  their  boats  and  their  lading,  some  distance  below  the 
falls,  and  proceed  on  their  voyage ;  otherwise  they  would  be 
driven  over  the  falls  and  destroyed.  An  occurrence  of  this 
kind  took  place  here  in  our  time.  An  Indian,  whom  I  have 
known,  accompanied  by  his  wife  and  child,  with  sixty  beaver 
skins,  descended  the  river  in  his  canoe,  in  the  spring,  when 
the  water  runs  rapid  and  the  current  is  strongest,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  selling  his  beaver  to  the  Netherlanders.  This  Indian 
carelessly  approached  too  near  to  the  falls,  before  he  discov- 
ered his  danger,  and,  notwithstanding  his  utmost  exertion  to 
gain  the  land,  his  frail  bark  with  all  on  board  was  swept  over 
by  the  rapid  current  and  down  the  falls ;  his  wife  and  child 
were  killed,  his  bark  shattered  to  pieces,  his  cargo  of  furs 
damaged.  But  his  life  was  preserved.  I  have  frequently  seen 
the  Indian,  and  hav^i  heard  him  relate  the  perilous  occurrence 
or  adventure. 

Of  the  Fresh  River  {Connecticut  River). 

This  river  is  called  the  Fresh  river,  because  it  aft'ords  more 
fresh  water  than  many  other  rivers.  It  has  advantageous  navi- 
gable situations.  It  also  has  finely  situated  land,  and  the 
country  affords  a  tolerably  good  fur  trade.  But  as  this  river 
with  its  advantages  is  mostly  in  the  occupancy  of  the  English 
nation,  to  the  injury  and  disadvantage  of  the  Hon.  the  U'est 
India  Company,  which  they  continue  to  occupy,  whereby  th^ 
company  is  injured  every  year,  it  will  be  painful  to  us  to  re- 
capitulate the  subject,  as  the  same  is  stated  in  the  remon- 


12 


strance  of  the  New-Netherlanders,  where  we  leave  the  matter 
and  pass  to  the  East  river. 

Of  the  East  River, 

This  river  is  thus  named  because  it  extends  eastward  from 
the  city  of  New-Amsterdam.  By  some  this  river  is  held  to  be 
an  arm  of  the  sea,  or  a  bay,  because  it  is  very  wide  in  some 
places,  and  because  both  ends  of  the  same  are  connected  with 
and  empty  into  the  ocean.  This  subtility  notwithstanding,  we 
adopt  the  common  opinion,  and  hold  it  to  be  a  river.  Be  it 
then  a  river  or  a  bay,  as  men  may  please  to  name  it,  still  it  is 
one  of  the  best,  most  fit,  and  most  convenient  places  and  most 
advantageous  accommodations  which  a  country  can  possess  or 
desire,  for  the  following  reasons :  Long  Island,  which  is 
about  forty  miles  in  length,  makes  this  river.  The  river,  and 
most  of  the  creeks,  bays,  and  inlets  joining  the  same,  are  navi- 
gable in  winter  and  in  summer  without  much  danger.  This 
river  also  affords  a  safe  and  convenient  passage  at  all  seasons 
to  those  who  desire  to  sail  east  or  west ;  and  the  same  is  most 
used,  because  the  outside  passage  is  more  dangerous.  Most 
of  the  English  (of  New- England)  who  wish  to  go  south  to  Vir- 
ginia, to  South  river,  or  to  other  southern  places,  pass  through 
this  river,  which  brings  no  small  traffic  and  advantage  to  the 
city  of  New-Am.sterdam.  This  also  causes  the  English  to  fre- 
quent our  harbours,  to  which  they  are  invited  for  safety. 
Lastly,  this  river  is  famous  on  account  of  its  convenient  bays, 
inlets,  havens,  rivers,  and  creeks,  on  both  sides,  to  wit,  on  the 
side  of  Long  Island  and  on  the  side  of  the  fast  or  main  land. 
In  the  Netherlands,  no  such  place  is  known.  Of  this  and  the 
other  rivers  of  New-Netherlands,  enough  has  been  said,  in  our 
opinion,  for  this  time  and  for  our  purpose. 

Of  the  Formaiio?i,  SoiV,  and  Appeara?ice  of  the  Land. 

We  will  now  treat  of  the  land,  with  its  natural,  superficial 
appearance,  beginning  with  the  formations  of  the  earth.  Near 
and  along  the  ^ea-shores,  the  soil  is  light  and  sandy,  with  a 
mixture  of  clay,  which  enriches  the  land.  The  productions 
are  different  kinds  of  wood,  various  fruits  and  vegetables. 
Barrens  and  sterile  heath  land  are  not  here.  The  whole  coun- 
try has  a  waving  surface,  and  in  some  places  high  hills  and 


13 


protruding  mountains,  particularly  those  named  the  Highlands, 
which  is  a  place  of  high,  connected  mountain  land,  about  three 
miles  broad,  extending  in  curved  forms  throughout  the  coun- 
try ;  separated  in  some  places,  and  then  again  connected. 
There  also  is  much  fine  level  land,  intersected  with  brooks, 
affording  pasturage  of  great  length  and  breadth,  but  mostly 
along  the  rivers,  and  near  the  salt  water  side.  Inland  most  of 
the  country  is  waving,  with  hills  which  generally  are  not  steep, 
but  ascend  gradually.  We  sometimes  in  travelling  impercep- 
tibly find  ourselves  on  high,  elevated  situations,  from  which  we 
overlook  large  portions  of  the  country.  The  neighbouring  emi- 
nence, the  surrounding  valleys,  and  the  highest  trees  are  over- 
looked, and  again  lost  in  the  distant  space.  Here  our  atten- 
tion is  arrested  in  the  beautiful  landscape  around  us,  here  the 
painter  can  find  rare  and  beautiful  subjects  for  the  employ- 
ment of  his  pencil,  and  here  also  the  huntsman  is  animated 
when  he  views  the  enchanting  prospects  presented  to  the  eyes ; 
on  the  hills,  at  the  brooks  and  in  the  valleys,  where  the  game 
abounds  and  where  the  deer  are  feeding,  or  gambolling  or  rest- 
ing in  the  shades  in  full  view. 

The  surface  of  the  land  generally  is  composed  of  a  black 
soil  intermixed  with  clay,  about  a  foot  or  a  foot  and  a  half 
deep,  in  some  places  more,  and  in  some  less ;  below  the 
stratum  is  white,  reddish  and  yellow  clay,  which  in  some  places 
is  mixed  with  sand,  and  in  others  with  gravel  and  stones. 
Here  and  there, large  rocks  and  stones  appear  on  the  surface. 
There  are  also  hills  of  pure  clay,  but  sand  hills  I  have  not 
seen,  except  near  the  sea-shore,  which  have  been  cast  up  or 
formed  by  the  ocean.  There  also  are  very  rocky  places  w^hich 
our  naturalists  suppose  abound  in  minerals.  The  mountains 
and  highlands  are  in  some  places  tillable  and  fertile,  the  soil 
being  composed  of  clay  intermixed  with  stone.  Other  parts 
are  composed  of  rocks,  of  various  colours,  but  all  overgrown 
with  wood,  growing  in  the  seams,  rents,  clefts,  and  ravines. 
Such  are  the  aspects  of  the  mountains,  the  hills  and  inland 
country.  Near  the  rivers  and  water  sides  there  are  large  ex- 
tensive plains  containing  several  hundred  morgens  ;*  in  one 
place  more  and  in  another  less,  which  are  very  convenient  for 
plantations,  villages,  and  towns.  There  also  are  brookiands 
and  fresh  and  salt  meadows  ;  some  so  extensive  that  the  eye 
cannot  oversee  the  same.    Those  are  good  for  pasturage  and 


*  A  morgeii  is  somewhat  less  than  two  acres. 


14 


hay,  although  the  same  are  overflowed  by  the  spring  tides,  par- 
ticularly near  the  seaboard.  These  meadows  resemble  the  low 
and  out  lands  of  the  Netherlands.  Most  of  them  could  be 
dyked  and  cultivated.  We  also  find  meadow  grounds  far  in- 
land, which  are  all  fresh  and  make  good  hayland.  \\'here  the 
meadows  are  boggy  and  wet,  such  failings  are  easily  remedied 
by  cutting  and  breaking  the  bogs  in  winter  and  letting  off  the 
water  in  the  spring.  There  also  would  be  much  more  meadow 
ground,  but  as  the  soil  is  natural  for  wood,  and  as  the  birds 
and  the  winds  carry  the  seeds  in  every  direction,  hence  those 
moist,  low  grounds  are  covered  with  timber  and  underwoods 
which  we  call  cripple  bushes.  The  situations  are  curious  to 
behold  where  those  lands  are  cleared  and  cultivated.  They 
are  wonderfully  fertile,  which,  in  short,  is  the  general  quality  of 
such  land,  and  of  most  of  the  places  we  have  noticed.  Thus 
we  tender  to  the  kind  reader  the  fruitfulness  of  this  land,  sub- 
ject to  his  own  judgment.  I  admit  that  I  am  incompetent  to 
describe  the  beauties,  the  grand  and  sublime  works,  wherewith 
Providence  has  diversified  this  land.  Our  opinions  are  formed 
by  the  eye  alone,  therefore  we  cannot  do  justice  and  give  as- 
surance to  the  heart. 

Of  the  Fruit  Trees  brought  over  from  the  N'etherhmas. 

The  Netherland  settlers,  who  are  lovers  of  fruit,  on  observing 
that  the  climate  was  suitable  to  the  production  of  fruit  trees, 
have  brought  over  and  planted  various  kinds  of  apple  and  pear 
trees,  which  thrive  well.  Those  also  grow  from  the  seeds,  of 
which  I  have  seen  many,  which,  without  grafting,  bore  delicious 
fruit  in  the  sixth  year.  The  stocks  may  also  be  grafted  when 
the  same  are  as  large  as  thorns,  which,  being  cut  oft"  near  the 
root  and  grafted,  are  then  set  into  the  ground,  when  the  graft 
also  strikes  root :  otherwise  the  fruit  is  somewhat  hard.  But, 
in  general,  grafting  is  not  as  necessary  here  as  in  the  Nether- 
lands, for  most  of  the  fruit  is  good  without  it,  which  there 
would  be  harsh  and  sour  or  would  not  bear.  The  English  have 
brought  over  the  first  quinces,  and  we  have  also  brought  ov^er 
stocks  and  seeds  which  thrive  well.  Orchard  cherries  thrive 
well  and  produce  large  fruit.  Spanish  cherries,  forerunners, 
morella^s,  of  every  kind  we  have,  as  in  the  Netherlands ;  and 
the  trees  bear  better,  because  the  blossoms  are  not  injured  by 
the  frosts.    The  peaches,  which  are  sought  after  in  the  Nether- 


15 


lands,  grow  wonderfully  well  here.  If  a  stone  is  put  into  the 
earth,  it  will  spring  in  the  same  season,  and  grow  so  rapidly 
as  to  bear  fruit  in  the  fourth  year,  and  the  limbs  are  frequently 
broken  by  the  weight  of  the  peaches,  which  usually  are  very 
fine.  We  have  also  introduced  morecotoons  (a  kind  of  peach), 
apricots,  several  sorts  of  the  best  plums,  almonds,  persimmons, 
cornelian  cherries,  figs,  several  sorts  of  currants,  gooseberries, 
calissiens,  and  thorn  apples  ;  and  we  do  not  doubt  but  that  the 
olive  would  thrive  and  be  profiiable,  but  we  have  them  not. 
Although  the  land  is  full  of  many  kinds  of  grapes,  we  still 
want  settings  of  the  best  kinds  from  Germany,  for  the  purpose 
of  enabling  our  wine  planters  here  to  select  the  best  kinds,  and 
to  propagate  the  same.  In  short,  every  kind  of  fruit  which 
grows  in  the  Netherlands  is  plenty  already  in  the  New-Nether- 
lands, which  have  been  introduced  by  the  lovers  of  agriculture, 
and  the  fruits  thrive  better  here,  particularly  such  kinds  as  re- 
quire a  warmer  climate. 

Of  the  Flowers. 

The  flowers  in  general  which  the  Netherlanders  have  intro- 
duced there  are  the  white  and  red  roses  of  different  kinds,  the 
cornelian  roses,  and  stock  roses  ;  and  those  of  which  there 
were  none  before  in  the  country,  such  as  eglantine,  several 
kinds  of  gillyflowers,  jenoffelins,  different  varieties  of  fine 
tulips,  crown  imperials,  white  lilies,  the  lily  frutularia,  anem- 
ones, baredameSfv  violets,  marigolds,  summer  sots,  &c.  The 
clove  tree  has  also  been  introduced ;  and  there  are  several  in- 
digenous trees  that  bear  handsome  flowers,  which  are  unknown 
in  the  Netherlands.  We  also  find  there  some  flowers  of  native 
growth,  as,  for  instance,  sunflowers,  red  and  yellow  lilies,  moun- 
tain lilies,  morning  stars,  red,  white,  and  yellow  maritofties  (a 
very  sweet  flower),  several  species  of  bell  flowers,  &c. ;  to 
which  I  have  not  given  particular  attention,  but  amateurs 
would  hold  them  in  high  estimation,  and  make  them  widely 
known. 

Of  the  Agricultural  Productions, 

The  pursuit  of  agriculture  is  not  heavy  and  expensive  there, 
as  it  is  in  the  Netherlands.  First,  because  the  fencing  and  en- 
closing of  the  land  does  not  cost  much ;  for,  instead  of  the 
Netherlands  dykes  and  ditches,  they  set  up  post  and  rail,  or 
palisado  fences,  and  when  new  clearings  are  made,  they  com- 


i6 


monly  have  fencing  timber  enough  on  the  land  to  remove, 
which  costs  nothing  but  the  labour,  which  is  reasonably  cheap 
to  those  who  have  their  own  hands,  and  without  domestic 
labour  very  little  can  be  effected.  The  land  whereon  there  are 
few  standing  trees,  and  which  has  been  grubbed  and  ploughed 
twice,  we  hold  to  be  prepared  for  a  crop  of  winter  grain.  For 
summer  grain  one  ploughing  is  sufficient.  If  it  is  intended  to 
sow  the  same  field  again  with  winter  grain,  then  the  stubble  is 
ploughed  in,  and  the  land  is  sowed  with  wheat  or  rye,  which 
in  ordinary  seasons  will  yield  a  fine  crop. 

I  can  affirm  that  during  my  residence  of  nine  years  in  the 
country  I  have  never  seen  land  manured,  and  it  is  seldom 
done.  The  land  is  kept  in  order  by  tillage,  which  is  often 
done  to  keep  down  weeds  and  brush,  but  for  which  it  would 
have  rest.  Some  persons  (which  I  also  hold  to  be  good 
management),  when  their  land  becomes  foul  and  weedy,  break 
it  up  and  sow  the  same  with  peas,  because  a  crop  of  peas 
softens  the  land  and  makes  it  clean ;  but  most  of  the  land  is 
too  rich  for  peas,  which  when  sown  on  the  same  grow  so  rank 
that  the  crop  falls  and  rots  on  the  land.  Some  of  the  land 
must  be  reduced  by  cropping  it  with  wheat  and  barley,  before 
it  is  proper  to  sow  the  same  with  peas.  We  have  frequently 
seen  the  straw  of  wheat  and  barley  grow  so  luxuriant  that  the 
crops  yielded  very  little  grain. 

I  deem  it  worthy  of  notice  that  with  proper  attention,  in  or- 
dinary seasons,  two  ripe  crops  of  peas  can  be  raised  on  the 
same  land  in  one  season,  in  the  New-Netherlands.  It  has  fre- 
quently been  done  in  the  following  manner,  viz.  The  first 
crop  was  sown  in  the  last  of  March  or  first  of  April,  which  will 
ripen  about  the  first  of  July ;  the  crop  is  then  removed,  and  the 
land  ploughed,  and  sowed  again  with  peas  of  the  first  crop. 
The  second  crop  will  ripen  ift  September,  or  about  the  first  of 
October,  when  the  weather  is  still  fine  and  warm.  The  same 
can  also  be  done  with  buckwheat,  which  has  frequently  been 
proved ;  but  the  first  crop  is  usually  much  injured  by  finches 
and  other  birds,  and,  as  wheat  and  rye  are  plenty,  therefore 
there  is  very  little  buckwheat  sown.  The  maize  (Indian  corn) 
is  carefully  attended  to,  and  is  sufficient  to  the  wants  of  the 
country. 

The  Turkey  wheat,  or  maize,  as  the  grain  is  named,  many 
persons  suppose  to  be  the  same  kind  of  grain  which  Jesse  sent 
parched  by  his  son  David  to  his  other  sons  of  the  army  of 


17 


Israel.  This  is  a  hardy  grain,  and  is  fit  for  the  sustenance  ot 
man  and  animals.  It  is  easily  cultivated  and  will  grow  in  al- 
most every  kind  of  land.  .  .  .  After  a  corn  crop  is  gathered, 
the  land  may  be  sowed  with  winter  grain  in  the  fall  without 
previous  ploughing.  When  this  is  intended,  the  corn  is  gath- 
ered, the  stalks  are  pulled .  up  and  burnt,  the  hills  levelled, 
and  the  land  sown  and  harrowed  smooth  and  level.  Good 
crops  are  raised  in  this  manner.  I  have  seen  rye  sown  as 
before  described,  which  grew  so  tall  that  a  man  of  common 
size  would  bind  the  ears  together  above  his  head,  which  yielded 
seven  and  eight  schepels^^  Amsterdam  measure,  per  vm  of  io8 
sheaves,  of  which  two  vins  made  a  wagon  load. 

The  Rev.  Johannis  Megapolensis,  Junior,  minister  of  the 
colony  of  Rensselaerwyck,  in  certain  letters  which  he  has  writ- 
ten to  his  friends,  which  were  printed  (as  he  has  told  me)  with- 
out his  consent,  but  may  be  fully  credited, —  he  being  a  man  of 
truth  and  of  great  learning,  who  writes  in  a  vigorous  style, — 
states,  with  other  matters,  that  a  certain  farmer  had  cropped 
one  field  with  wheat  eleven  years  in  succession,  which  to  many 
persons  will  seem  extraordinary,  and  may  not  be  credited. 
Still  it  is  true,  and  the  residents  of  the  place  testify  to  the 
same,  and  they  add  that  this  same  land  was  ploughed  but 
twelve  times  in  the  eleven  seasons, —  twice  in  the  first  year, 
and  once  in  every  succeeding  year,  when  the  stubble  was 
ploughed  in,  the  wheat  sown  and  harrowed  under.  I  owned 
land  adjoining  the  land  referred  to,  and  have  seen  the  eleventh 
crop,  which  was  tolerably  good.  The  man  who  did  this  is 
named  Brandt  Pelen :  he  was  born  in  the  district  of  Utrecht, 
and  at  the  time  was  a  magistrate  (schepen)  of  the  colony  of 
Rensselaerwyck.  We  acknowledge  that  this  relation  appears 
to  be  marvellous,  but  in  the  country  it  is  not  so,  for  there  are 
many  thousand  morge?is  of  as  good  land  there  as  the  land  of 
which  we  have  spoken. 

During  the  period  when  I  resided  in  the  New-Netherlands, 
a  certain  honorable  gentleman,  named  John  Everts  Bout  (who 
was  recommended  to  the  colonists  by  their  High  Mightinesses, 
&c.),  laid  a  wager  that  he  could  raise  a  crop  of  barley  on  a  field 
containing  seven  morgens  of  land,  which  would  grow  so  tall  in 
every  part  of  the  field  that  the  ears  could  easily  be  tied  to- 
gether above  his  head.  I  went  to  see  the  field  of  barley,  and 
found  that  the  straw,  land  by  land,  was  from  six  to  seven  feet 

♦A  schej>€l  b  three  pecks  English. 


i8 


high,  and  very  little  of  it  any  shorter.  It  has  also  been  stated 
to  me  as  a  fact  that  barley  has  frequently  been  raised,  al- 
though not  common,  which  yielded  eleven  scJiepel^  Amsterdam 
measure,  per  vin  of  io8  sheaves.  Therefore,  all  persons  who 
are  acquainted  with  the  New-Netherlands  judge  the  country 
to  be  as  well  adapted  for  the  cultivation  of  grain  as  any  part 
of  the  world  which  is  known  to  the  Netherlanders,  or  is  in  their 
possession. 

With  the  other  productions  of  the  land  we  must  include  to- 
bacco, which  is  also  cultivated  in  the  country,  and  is,  as  well 
as  the  maize,  well  adapted  to  prepare  the  land  for  other  agri- 
cultural purposes,  which  also,  with  proper  attention,  grows  fine, 
and  yields  more  profit.  Not  only  myself,  but  hundreds  of 
others,  have  raised  tobacco  the  leaves  of  which  were  three- 
fourths  of  a  yard  long.  The  tobacco  raised  here  is  of  different 
kind,  but  principally  of  the  Virginia  kind,  from  which  it  differs 
little  in  flavour,  although  the  Virginia  is  the  best.  Still  it  does 
not  differ  so  much  in  quality  as  in  price.  Next  to  the  Virginia 
it  will  be  the  best ;  many  persons  esteem  it  better,  and  give  it 
a  preference.  It  is  even  probable  that  when  the  people  ex- 
tend the  cultivation  of  the  article,  and  more  tobacco  is  planted, 
that  it  will  gain  more  reputation  and  esteem.  Many  persons 
are  of  opinion  that  the  defect  in  flavour  arises  from  the  new- 
ness of  the  land,  and  hasty  cultivation,  which  will  gradually  be 
removed. 

Barley  grows  well  in  the  country,  but  it  is  not  much  needed. 
Cummin  seed,  canary  seed,  and  the  like,  have  been  tried,  and 
Commander  Minuit  testifies  that  those  articles  succeed  w^ell, 
but  are  not  sought  after.  Flax  and  hemp  will  grow  fine,  but 
as  the  women  do  not  spin  much,  and  the  Indians  have  hemp 
in  abundance  in  the  woods  from  which  they  make  strong  ropes 
and  nets,  for  these  reasons  very  little  flax  is  raised ;  but  the 
persons  who  do  sow  the  seed  find  that  the  land  is  of  the 
proper  quality  for  such  articles. 

Of  the  Seasons. 

The  changes  of  the  year,  and  the  calculations  of  time,  are 
observed  as  in  the  Netherlands ;  and  although  these  countries 
differ  much  in  their  situations  in  south  latitude,  still  they  do  not 
differ  much  in  the  temperature  of  cold  and  heat.  But,  to  dis- 
criminate more  accurately,  it  should  be  remarked  that  the  win 


19 


ters  usually  terminate  with  the  month  of  February,  at  New-Am- 
sterdam, which  is  the  chief  place  and  centre  of  the  New- 
Netherlands.  Then  the  spring  or  Lent-like  weather  begins. 
Some  persons  calculate  from  the  21st  of  March,  new  style,  after 
which  it  seldom  freezes,  nor  before  this  does  it  seldom  summer ; 
but  at  this  season  a  change  evidently  begins.  The  fishes  then 
leave  the  bottom  ground,  the  buds  begin  to  swell ;  the  grass 
sprouts,  and  in  some  places  the  cattle  are  put  to  grass  in 
March  ;  in  other  situations  they  wait  later,  as  the  situations 
and  soils  vary.  The  horses  and  working  cattle  are  not  turned 
out  to  grass  until  May,  when  the  grass  is  plenty  everywhere. 
April  is  the  proper  month  for  gardening.  Later  the  farmers 
should  not  sow  summer  grain,  unless  they  are  not  ready;  it 
may  be  done  later,  and  still  ripen. 

Easterly  winds  and  stormy  weather  are  common  in  the 
spring,  which  then  cause  high  tides ;  but  they  cannot  produce 
high  floods.  The  persons  who  desire  to  explore  and  view  the 
country  have  the  best  opportunity  in  April  and  May.  The 
grass  and  herbage  at  this  season  causes  no  inconvenience  in 
the  woods,  and  still  there  is  grass  enough  for  horses.  The 
cold  has  not  overcome  the  heat  produced  by  the  wood  burn- 
ings, and  the  ground  which  has  been  burnt  over  is  yet  bare 
enough  for  inspection.  The  flowers  are  then  in  bloom,  and  the 
woods  are  fragrant  with  their  perfume.  In  the  middle  of  May, 
strawberries  are  always  plenty  in  the  fields,  where  they  grow 
naturally ;  they  are  seldom  planted  in  the  gardens,  but  there, 
in  warm  situations,  they  are  earlier.  When  the  warm  weather 
sets  in,  then  vegetation  springs  rapidly.  It  is  so  rapid  as  to 
change  the  fields  from  nakedness  to  green  in  eight  or  ten  days. 
There  are  no  frosts,  in  May,  or  they  are  very  uncommon,  as 
then  it  is  summer.  The  winter  grain  is  in  full  blossom.  The 
summer  may  be  said  to  begin  in  May,  but  it  really  is  calcu- 
lated from  the  first  of  June,  and  then  the  weather  is  frequently 
very  warm,  and  there  is  seldom  much  rain.  Still  there  are  no 
extremes  of  wet  and  dry  weather,  and  we  may  freely  say  that 
the  summers  are  always  better  in  the  New-Netherlands  than 
in  Holland.  ... 

Now  when  the  summer  progresses  finely,  the  land  rewards 
the  labor  of  the  husbandman  ;  the  flowers  smile  on  his  counte- 
nance ;  the  fishes  sport  in  their  element,  and  the  herds  play  in 
the  fields,  as  if  no  reverses  were  to  return.  But  the  tobacco, 
and  the  fruit  of  the  vines,  come  in  in  September.  There  is 
plenty  here  for  man  and  the  animal  creation. 


20 


The  days  are  not  so  long  in  summer,  nor  so  short  in  winter^ 
as  they  are  in  Holland.  Their  length  in  summer,  and  their 
shortness  in  winter,  differ  about  an  hour  and  a  half.  It  is 
found  that  this  difference  in  the  length  of  the  days  causes  no 
inconvenience  ;  the  days  in  summer  are  long  and  warm  enough 
for  those  who  are  inclined  to  labour,  and  do  it  from  necessity ; 
and  for  those  who  eek  diversion.  The  winters  pass  by  with- 
out becoming  tedious.  The  reasons  for  this,  and  the  objections 
tliereto,  we  leave  to  the  learned,  as  we  deem  the  subject  not 
worthy  of  our  inquiry.  The  received  opinion  on  this  subject 
is  that  the  difference  in  the  length  of  the  days  and  nights 
arises  from  the  difference  of  latitude  of  the  New-Netherlands 
and  Holland.  The  former  lies  nearer  the  equinoctial  line,  and 
nearer  the  centre  of  the  globe.  As  they  differ  in  length,  so 
also  they  differ  in  twilight.  When  it  is  mid-day  in  Holland,  it 
is  morning  in  the  New-Netherlands.  On  this  subject  there  are 
also  different  opinions.  Most  men  say  that  the  New-Netherlands 
lay  so  much  farther  to  the  west  that  its  situation  causes  this 
variation;  others  go  further,  and  dispute  the  roundness  of  the 
globe.  As  the  creation  of  the  world  is  connected  with  this 
subject,  which  none  will  deny,  and  as  the  difference  in  the  ap- 
pearance of  the  eclipses  supports  the  truth  of  the  first  position 
of  the  roundness  of  the  globe,  therefore  the  other  position  ap- 
pears to  be  unsupported. 

The  autumns  in  the  New-Netherlands  are  very  fine,  lovely, 
and  agreeable  ;  more  delightful  cannot  be  found  on  the  earth ; 
not  only  because  the  summer  productions  are  gathered,  and  the 
earth  is  then  yielding  its  surplusage,  but  also  because  the  sea- 
son is  so  well  tempered  with  heat  and  cold  as  to  appear  like 
the  month  of  May,  except  that  on  some  mornings  there  will  be 
frost,  which  by  ten  o'clock  will  be  removed  by  the  ascending 
sun.  ...  In  short  the  autumns  in  the  New-Netherlands  are  as 
fine  as  the  summers  of  Holland,  and  continue  very  long ;  for 
below  the  highlands,  towards  the  sea-coast,  the  winter  does  not 
set  in  or  freeze  much  before  Christmas,  the  waters  remaining 
open,  the  v/eather  fine,  and  in  many  places  the  cattle  grazing 
in  the  fields.  Above  the  highlands,  advancing  northerly,  the 
weather  is  colaer,  the  fresh  waters  freeze,  the  stock  is  shel- 
tered, the  kitchens  are  provided,  and  all  things  are  put  in  order 
for  the  winter.  The  fat  oxen  and  swine  are  slaughtered.  The 
wild  geese,  turkeys,  and  deer  are  at  their  best  in  this  season, 
and  easiest  obtained,  because  of  the  cold,  and  because  the 


21 


woods  are  now  burnt  over,  and  the  brushwood  and  herbage  out 
of  the  way.  This  is  also  the  Indian  hunting  season,  wherein 
such  great  numbers  of  deer  are  killed  that  a  person  who  is  un- 
informed of  the  vast  extent  of  the  country  would  imagine  that 
all  these  animals  would  be  destroyed  in  a  short  time.  But 
the  country  is  so  extensive,  and  their  subsistence  so  abundant, 
and  the  hunting  being  confined  mostly  to  certain  districts, 
therefore  no  diminution  of  the  deer  is  observable.  The  Ind- 
ians also  affirm  that  before  the  arrival  of  the  Christians,  and 
before  the  small-pox  broke  out  amongst  them,  they  were  ten 
times  as  numerous  as  they  now  are,  and  that  their  population 
had  been  melted  down  by  this  disease,  whereof  nine-tenths  of 
them  have  died.  That  then,  before  the  arrival  of  the  Chris- 
tians, many  more  deer  were  killed  than  there  now  are,  without 
any  perceptible  decrease  of  their  numbers. 

We  will  now  notice  the  winters  of  the  New-Netherlands, 
which  are  different  at  different  places.  Above  the  highlands, 
towards  Rensselaerwyck,  and  in  the  interior  places  extending 
towards  New-England  (which  we  still  claim),  there  the  winters 
are  colder  and  last  longer  than  at  New-Amsterdam,  and  other 
places  along  the  sea-coast,  or  on  Long  Island,  and  on  the 
South  river  (Delaware).  At  the  latter  places,  there  seldom  is 
any  hard  freezing  weather  before  Christmas,  and  although 
there  may  be  some  cold  nights,  and  trifling  snows,  still  it  does 
not  amount  to  much,  for  during  the  day  it  is  usually  clear 
weather.  But  at  Rensselaerwyck  the  winters  begin  earlier,  as 
in  1645,  when  the  North  river  closed  on  the  25th  day  of  No- 
vember, and  remained  frozen  very  late.  Below  the  highlands 
and  near  the  sea-coast,  as  has  been  observed,  it  never  begins 
to  freeze  so  early,  but  the  cold  weather  usually  keeps  off  until 
about  Christmas,  and  frequently  later,  before  the  rivers  are 
closed ;  and  then  they  frequently  are  so  full  of  drifting  ice  dur- 
ing the  north-west  winds  as  to  obstruct  the  navigation ;  and, 
whenever  the  wind  shifts  to  the  south  or  south-east,  the  ice 
decays,  and  the  rivers  are  open  and  clear.  .  .  , 

It  is  strange  and  worthy  of  observation,  and  surpasses  all 
reasoning,  that  in  the  New-Netherlands,  without  or  with  but 
iittle  wind  (for  when  the  weather  is  coldest,  there  seldom  is 
much  wind),  although  it  lies  in  the  latitude  of  Spain  and  Italv, 
and  the  summer  heat  is  similar,  that  the  winters  should  be  so 
much  colder  as  to  render  useless  all  the  plants  and  herbs  which 
grow  in  those  countries,  which  will  not  endure  the  cold  weather. 


22 


The  winter  weathei  iS  dry  and  cold,  and  we  find  that  the  pel- 
tries and  feltings  are  prior  and  better  than  the  furs  of  Mus- 
covy. For  this  difference  several  reasons  are  assigned,  which 
we  will  relate,  without  controverting  any,  except  in  remarking 
that  in  most  cases  wherein  many  different  reasons  are  assigned 
to  establish  a  subject,  all  are  frequently  discredited.  Some  say 
that  the  New-Netherlands  lie  so  much  further  west  on  the 
globe,  and  that  this  causes  the  difference ;  others  who  compare 
the  summer  heat  with  Spain  and  Italy  deny  this  position ; 
others  declare  that  the  globe  is  not  round,  and  that  the  country 
lies  in  a  declining  position  from  the  sun.  Others  assert  that 
the  last  discovered  quarter  of  the  world  is  larger  than  the  other 
parts,  and  ask,  if  the  world  formerly  was  considered  round,  how 
that  theory  can  be  supported  now,  when  about  one-half  is  added 
to  it  ?  Some  also  say  that  the  higher  a  country  is  situated,  the 
colder  it  is.  Now,  say  they,  the  New-Netherlands  lie  in  a 
high  westerly  position ;  ergo^  it  must  be  cold  there  in  winter, 
and  as  warm  in  summer.  Many  remark,  and  with  much  plausi- 
bility also,  that  the  country  extends  northerly  many  hundred 
miles  to  the  frozen  ocean,  and  is  accessible  by  Davis  Straits 
(which  by  some  is  doubted),  and  that  the  land  is  intersected 
and  studded  by  high  mountains,  and  that  the  snow  remains 
lying  on  them  and  in  the  valleys,  and  seldom  thaws  away  en- 
tirely ;  and  that  when  the  wind  blows  from  and  over  those  cold 
regions,  it  brings  cold  with  it.  Receiving  the  cold  from  above 
and  from  beneath  (both  being  cold),  it  must  of  course  follow 
that  the  cold  comes  with  the  north-westerly  winds.  On  the 
contrary,  they  say  that,  whenever  the  wind  blows  from  the 
sea,  if  it  be  in  the  heat  of  the  winter,  then  the  weather  be- 
comes sultry  and  warm  as  in  Lent.  .  .  . 

There  is  everywhere  fuel  in  abundance,  and  to  be  obtained 
for  the  expense  of  cutting  and  procuring  the  same.  The  super- 
abundance of  this  country  is  not  equalled  by  any  other  in  the 
world.  The  Indians  do  not  clothe  as  we  do,  but.  frequently  go 
half-naked  and  withstand  the  cold,  in  fashion,  and  fear  it  little. 
They  are  never  overcome  with  the  cold,  or  injured  by  it.  In 
bitter  cold  weather,  they  will  not  pursue  their  customary  pleas- 
ures, particularly  the  women  and  the  children  ;  for  the  men  do 
not  care  so  much  for  the  cold  days  in  winter  as  they  do  for  the 
hot  days  in  summer. 


23 


Washington  Irving's  services  for  American  history  and  for  the  study  of 
history  among  our  people  were  scarcely  less  than  his  services  for  our  gen- 
eral literature,  in  which  field  his  is  the  first  great  name.  The  lives  of 
Washington,  Columbus,  Mahomet,  and  Goldsmith,  "  The  Conquest  of 
Granada,"  the  "  Spanish  Papers,"  and  so  much  besides  witness  to  the  wide 
range  of  his  historical  activities;  and  everywhere  —  in  Spain,  in  England, 
and  at  home  —  it  is  with  the  historian's  eye  that  he  looks  upon  the  world. 
But  above  all  other  places  New  York  was  dear  to  him  and  is  his  debtor. 
Her  early  history  most  stirred  his  imagination  from  first  to  last,  and  it  was 
fitting  that  his  final  home  and  his  grave  should  be  upon  the  banks  of  the 
Hudson  whose  legends  he  did  most  to  vivify.  His  early  work,  "  Diedrich 
Knickerbocker's  History  of  New  York,"  was  a  burlesque;  but  it  had  a 
great  effect  in  awakening  interest  in  the  early  period  of  New  York  history. 
Professor  Jameson  well  surmises  that  the  great  amount  of  work  which 
the  State  government  in  the  next  generation  did  for  the  historical  illustra- 
tion of  the  Dutch  period,  through  the  researches  of  Mr.  Brodhead  in  for- 
eign archives,  had  this  unhistorical  little  book  for  one  of  its  principal 
causes."  Irving  himself  says  that  at  the  time  he  wrote  his  humorous  book 
few  of  his  fellow-citizens  were  aware  "  that  New  York  had  ever  been  called 
New  Amsterdam  or  had  heard  of  the  names  of  its  early  Dutch  governors 
or  cared  a  straw  about  their  ancient  Dutch  progenitors." 

"  The  main  object  of  my  work,"  says  Irving,  "had  a  bearing  wide  from 
the  sober  aim  of  history.  It  was  to  embody  the  traditions  of  our  city  in 
an  amusing  form ;  to  illustrate  its  local  humors,  customs,  and  peculiari- 
ties; to  clothe  home  scenes  and  places  and  familiar  names  with  those 
imaginative  and  whimsical  associations  so  seldom  met  with  in  our  new 
country,  but  which  live  like  charms  and  spells  about  the  cities  of  the  Old 
World,  binding  the  heart  of  the  native  inhabitant  to  his  home." 

"  When  I  find,  after  a  lapse  of  nearly  forty  years,"  he  wrote  at  Sunnyside 
in  1848,  "this  haphazard  production  of  my  youth  still  cherished  among  the 
descendants  of  the  Dutch  worthies,  when  I  find  its  very  name  become  a 
household  word  and  used  to  give  the  home  stamp  to  everything  recom- 
mended for  popular  acceptation, —  such  as  Knickerbocker  societies,  Knick- 
erbocker insurance  companies,  Knickerbocker  steamboats,  Knickerbocker 
omnibuses,  KnickerbockL,r  bread,  and  Knickerbocker  ice, —  and  when  I 
find  New  Yorkers  of  Dutch  descent  priding  themselves  upon  being  *  genuine 
Knickerbockers,'  I  please  myself  with  the  persuasion  that  I  have  struck  the 
right  chord." 

It  will  be  remembered  that  when  Diedrich  Knickerbocker  found  his  end 
approaching  he  disposed  of  his  worldly  affairs,  leaving  to  the  city  library  his 
Heidelberg  Catechism  and  Adrian  Van  der  Donck's  famous  account  of  the 
New  Netherland,  "  by  the  use  of  which  he  had  profited  greatly  in  his  sec- 
ond edition."  Van  der  Donck's  "  Description  of  New  Netherland  "  is  the 
most  important  work  which  has  come  down  to  us  describing  New  York 
in  the  early  period ;  and  the  selection  from  it  published  in  the  present  leaf- 
let is  given  in  connection  with  the  Old  South  lecture  on  Irving  as  one  of 
the  best  illustrations  of  the  original  documents  among  which  Irving  loved 
to  delve. 

**  Jonker  Adrian  van  der  Donck,  Doctor  of  Laws  and  advocate  of  the 
Supreme  Court  of  Holland,  has  done  more  to  give  to  his  contemporaries  a 
full  knowledge  of  the  country  of  his  adoption  than  any  other  man.  Sent 


34 


over  in  1642  as  Schout  (sheriff)  of  the  Patroons*  Colony  of  Rensselaerwyck, 
he  in  1647  left  this  service  in  consequence  of  a  quarrel  with  the  vice- 
director,  and  purchased  from  the  Indians  the  colony  of  Colen  Donck,  now 
Yonkers  (getting  its  name  from  his  title),  for  which  he  received  a  patent  in 
1648,"  A  controversy  between  Van  der  Donck  and  several  other  colonists 
and  the  government  led  to  a  Remonstrance  "  published  in  Holland  in 
1650,  doubtless  the  work  of  Van  der  Donck,  which  gives  incidentally  an 
account  of  New  Netherland  and  matters  relating  to  its  history,  of  high 
value.  A  translation  of  this  by  Henry  C.  Murphy  may  be  seen  in  the  "  New 
York  Historical  Collections,"  second  series,  ii.  251.  The  "  Description  of 
New  Netherland  "  appeared  in  Amsterdam  in  1655.  A  translation  of  the 
entire  work  by  General  Jeremiah  Johnson  was  published  in  the  "  New  York 
Historical  Society  Collections,"  1841.  The  description  of  the  country,  a 
large  portion  of  which  is  given  in  the  present  leaflet,  is  followed  by  a  long 
and  important  section  on  the  Indians,  and  by  a  discourse  between  a  patriot 
and  a  New  Netherlander  on  the  character  of  the  new  colony. 

The  best  account  of  the  original  sources  of  information  concerning  New 
Netherland  is  that  by  Berthold  Fernow  in  the  critical  notes  appended  to  his 
chapter  on  New  Netherland  in  the  "  Narrative  and  Critical  History  of  the 
United  States,"  vol.  iv.  The  great  series  of  volumes  of  *'  Documents  re- 
lating to  the  Colonial  History  of  the  State  of  New  York "  contains  many 
papers  illustrating  this  early  period.  Mrs.  Martha  J.  Lamb's  "  History  of 
the  City  of  New  York,"  and  the  "  Memorial  History  of  the  City  of  New 
York,"  edited  by  James  Grant  Wilson,  are  very  complete  upon  the  Dutch 
period.  There  are  m?ny  histories  of  the  State  of  New  York.  A  good  ac- 
count of  them  may  be  found  in  the  appendix  to  Elbridge  S.  Brooks's 
"  Story  of  New  York,"  which  is  the  best  book  for  the  young  people.  The 
excellent  volume  in  the  "  American  Commonwealths  "  series  is  b)  Ellis  H. 
Roberts. 


